KBC hosted a two-day Technology User Group Meeting in the Energy Capital of the World on November 1 and 2, 2023. This much-anticipated event served as an educational and collaborative platform, drawing more than 100 active software users from around the globe. The event’s underlying theme centered on empowering attendees to leverage KBC simulation software to drive their plant’s performance while reaching sustainability and profitability targets.
Featuring over 20 different client presentations, participants learned about cutting-edge technology directly from their industry peers, showcasing diverse perspectives beyond KBC’s contributions. Presentations revolved around operational excellence via digital transformation, energy optimization, emissions tracking, and decarbonizing both upstream and downstream operations, all while fostering valuable networking opportunities among peers.
The workshops discussed the latest advancements in technology, particularly artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML). These tools enhance plant efficiency and effectiveness across all assets campus wide. The conversations emphasized collaborative solutions that aim to reduce emissions not only within individual plants but across neighboring plants and the supply chain, paving the way to bring decarbonization to life.
According to Mike Aylott, KBC’s Chief Technology Officer, “The evolution of this energy transition is remarkable. Digital transformation, AI/ML advancements, and the pivot towards semi- and fully- autonomous operations are aligning to establish secure, scalable, and integrated systems.” Blending this innovation with adaptability promises a compelling roadmap for the future energy landscape.
Prachi Chapman, Global Services Leader – Simulation at KBC, elaborated on leveraging KBC’s Digital Twin technology powered up with Automated Model Maintenance (AMM) as a pivotal game-changer in refinery and petrochemical simulation, detailing its importance in users' simulation journey. This co-presentation with an Asian refiner also showcased KBC’s strong collaboration and co-innovation with their clients. With such a commitment, KBC and its partners play a crucial role in forging pathways toward efficiency, sustainability, and compliance in the refinery, petrochemical, and process industries.
The conference concluded by featuring software demonstrations of Petro-SIM®, Maximus®, Multiflash®, and Visual MESA.® These innovative software platforms are capable of tracking and reporting greenhouse gas emissions in real-time, evaluating digital readiness, assisting with green hydrogen production, optimizing processes, visualizing transformation in upstream simulations, and much more.
Shige Uehara, KBC’s former CEO, closed the User Group Meeting in sharing his vision of Digital Transformation. “In today’s digital transformation, it’s important to align the right data with the right people (or systems) at the right time, in the right format, and the right security measures without human intervention,” he said. The focus of this transformation, as outlined, revolves around understanding what needs to change, how to provoke that change, and most importantly, why change is necessary for a meaningful purpose.
Last but not least, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to all the attendees for their active participation, engaging discussions, and contributions toward making this a successful event. The exchange of knowledge and collaboration displayed at this User Group Meeting reflects a collective ambition towards a more sustainable and technologically advanced future to bring decarbonization to life.
The insights and trends explored at our conference are just the beginning. These highlights offer a glimpse of our best moments from our 2023 User Group Meeting in Houston.
Join us and immerse yourself in the latest advancements in technology. To be a part of this transformative journey, please contact us.